Umi + Vino @ Emporium Shokushin, Marina Square

Emporium Shokuhin at Marina Square opened with much fanfare as it is the largest Japanese supermarket in Singapore yet, with live seafood and premium meat cuts available for purchase. There are 7 Japanese dining concepts under its wing, specialising in namely sushi, ramen & gyoza, shabu-shabu, cold seafood and a fine-dining restaurant. I’ve tried 3 of the 7 concepts, so here’s my first review on Umi + Vino, acontemporary European-Japanese Seafood Wine Bar. Located outside the supermarket, Umi + Vino is one of the more popular choices as testified by its long queue on weekends. The menu consists of lots of seafood, be it chilled or grilled, you can definitely have it your way.
They have seafood platters that come with oysters and crab, priced at $58 and good for 2. However, for my dinner here with mum, we opted for ala-carte instead.[Big Plates] Mussels in White Wine Sauce ($26) – Before I arrived at the restaurant, my mum ordered the mussels and I was shocked at how puny each mussel was. It definitely didnt justify for the price, and certainly should not be considered a ‘big plate’ when the portion is nothing more than an appetiser. It’s a no for me.Gillardeau Oysters ($8 each) – Extremely fresh, plump and juicy. I especially loved the onion vinaigrette that helped sweetened the oysters. It’s hard to stop at 2.Grilled Bamboo Clam ($13) – As mentioned, you can have your seafood chilled or grilled. While some seafood can have their flavours enhanced with grilling, I doubt it is the case for bamboo clams. It was rather rubbery and had shrunk by 1/4 from the grill, which made it less satisfying than its chilled counterpart (I believe so).Grilled Whole Lobster ($48) – Hey, I think I just found you a whole grilled lobster that is $10 cheaper than Pince & Pints! *waves pompom* This dish stood out for me as the lobsters were extremely springy and juicy! There was a nice fragrance from its light seasoning and grilling. Its two claws were intact, so rejoice in having more lobster meat! The dish came with a special marinade on the side that tasted similar to teriyaki sauce and went fantastically well with the lobsters. A must-order here! Props to the fresh and yummy salad! Mum and I had a good time wiping this out. 🙂[Big Plate] Grilled Salmon + Asparagus + Egg ($24) – When the dish was first served to us, the salmon was severely undercooked. I guess the pressure in the kitchen was on with lots of orders to fulfill and a restaurant full of hungry diners. I was definitely disappointed at the oversight, however, the issue was swiftly resolved and we waited patiently for the 2nd portion of salmon to be cooked. The gravy is identical to the one served with the lobster and being a multi-purpose sauce it somehow goes well with even the salmon too. Asparagus and egg were the on spot.

The restaurant manager was a really nice lady who made sure we were well taken care of and I have to give it to her for keeping her smile on throughout the night even though the crew was just starting to familiarise themselves with the operations. I would believe that most teething issues have been sorted out by now, so head down and get your hands dirty!